Book contents
- The Cambridge History of the American Civil War
- The Cambridge History of the American Civil War
- The Cambridge History of the American Civil War
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Maps
- Contributors to Volume I
- Acknowledgments
- Note on the Text
- 1 Introduction: The Cambridge History of the American Civil War
- Part I Major Battles and Campaigns
- Part II Places
- 20 War on the Rivers
- 21 War on the Waters
- 22 The Blockade
- 23 The Border War
- 24 War in the Deep South
- 25 War in Appalachia
- 26 War in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas
- 27 War in the West
- 28 War in Indian Country
- Index
- References
21 - War on the Waters
from Part II - Places
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 11 October 2019
- The Cambridge History of the American Civil War
- The Cambridge History of the American Civil War
- The Cambridge History of the American Civil War
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Maps
- Contributors to Volume I
- Acknowledgments
- Note on the Text
- 1 Introduction: The Cambridge History of the American Civil War
- Part I Major Battles and Campaigns
- Part II Places
- 20 War on the Rivers
- 21 War on the Waters
- 22 The Blockade
- 23 The Border War
- 24 War in the Deep South
- 25 War in Appalachia
- 26 War in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas
- 27 War in the West
- 28 War in Indian Country
- Index
- References
Summary
The naval history of the American Civil War is often reduced to a discussion of the blockade, the clash between ironclads at the Battle of Hampton Roads, and a vague sense that gunboats and transports played an important role in the riverine campaigns of the western theater. The Union and Confederate navies certainly participated in those aspects of the larger conflict, but they also clashed on the high seas, made sophisticated combined arms operations possible on the coast, and influenced the strategic and diplomatic direction of the larger struggle between the North and the South. The naval war also defined the Civil War military experience for more than 90,000 combatants, a relatively small but not insignificant number. Although the war was ultimately won and lost on land, naval operations affected the pace, tempo, and outcome of the conflict.
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- The Cambridge History of the American Civil War , pp. 427 - 448Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2019